modular affordable housing: bringing the ‘bling’ to brooklyn
By Diana Mosher
Linden Grove is a 13-story modular building designed for low-income and formerly homeless seniors in Brooklyn’s Bushwick neighborhood. Rising at 223 Linden Street, the 153-unit apartment community will include studio and one-bedroom apartments. Modular buildings are constructed in a factory setting before being transported to the site for assembly. Linden Grove is designed with 206 modules. It will be completed in 2024. Residents will be selected through a lottery system.
The project team includes Blue Sea Development Company, Gilbane Development Company, sustainable building architect Chris Benedict, New York City Housing Authority, New York City Department of Housing Development and Preservation, New York City Housing Development Corporation, New York State of Opportunity | NYSERDA, Raymond James and TD Bank. JASA, a senior housing and services provider, will manage the property and provide supportive services focused on health, wellness and aging in place.
Les Bluestone, principal and co-founder of Blue Sea Development, has been developing affordable housing in the New York Metro area since 1999. Blue Sea was ahead of its time, not only in its chosen niche but also in its desire to build sustainable apartments for those who can’t afford market rate.
I caught up with Les recently to chat about his work on Linden Grove, modular construction and how design can make affordable housing feel more welcoming. “We don’t want the design or architecture to become formulaic,” Les told me. Read our whole conversation below.
Q: In your view, what are the benefits of modular construction?
Les Bluestone: Linden Grove will be a low carbon building, meeting multiple sustainability standards: Passive House, US Green Building Council LEED Platinum, the National Association of Home Builders’ National Green Building Standard (Gold), the US Department of Energy (Zero Energy Ready Home), the US Environmental Protection Agency (ENERGY STAR), and Fitwel.
Air sealing is a big part of all these green certifications we’re seeking. Getting that accomplished in a module in a factory is much easier than trying to do it on site in all sorts of weather conditions and with different trades. With modular, there’s a standardization that really helps and the overall quality is just generally better. The same people are doing the same thing each time in a controlled environment, so they get good at it quickly. You don’t have somebody who’s sweating, freezing, or trying to stay dry and not focusing on what they’re doing.
Q: Does the exterior architecture look like it’s a modular construction?
Les Bluestone: No, in fact, this building has a very traditional look to it from the outside. We tried to pick up a lot of contextual elements from some of the older buildings in Bushwick. If the exterior looks one way, you want the interiors to continue some connection to the outside. It’s a senior’s building, but it’s not assisted living, so the goal is making it look more like “home” as a senior in an urban setting would remember it to be.
Our population are older people with more traditional sensibilities, so the design won’t be too cutting edge or too minimalist. We’re creating a space that’s comfortable and feels homey but with modern elements.
Q: How do you prevent this kind of project from feeling institutional?
Les Bluestone: We try to accomplish this through the finishes and architectural details. Wainscoting, built-in seating areas on all the floors (to sit while waiting for the elevator), wall coverings throughout the building and carpet in the residential corridors are some of the ways we get there. Take carpeting for instance. While it does require more maintenance than ceramic flooring, it also gives the space a more luxurious feeling. However nice a hard ceramic floor looks, it’s always going to echo people’s footsteps and voices and just feel more institutional. We do specify modular carpet tiles to help reduce the long term replacement cost issue.
Q: Are affordable housing residents in general more design savvy than they used to be? Where does your team go for style and inspiration?
Les Bluestone: Definitely! People are very tuned in to what they see on TV and in advertising. Stainless steel appliances for example are a big thing and connote luxury to many people. There are features that we try to always incorporate, regardless of the building’s targeted income group. Not surprisingly, very few people care about what’s behind the walls, but if you dress the place up with beautiful light fixtures, flooring materials and stone countertops, that makes a real difference. Because we are constrained by the City on apartment size, we put in pullout drawers in some of the kitchen cabinets, because they’re so tight for space. Creating a kitchen chase wall so that the full depth refrigerators appear to be counter depth, providing a cleaner look to the kitchen, is another tool we use.
In terms of design elements, we start off with a City approved baseline budget, but we usually are able to tweak it and add to it as we go along. This is harder to do as a modular building because most everything needs to be decided before fabrication begins, but we still give them as much design bling as the City and budget will allow. The trick is to find the most cost effective bling. Every year new products come out, new designs are popular and while you want something that impresses, you want something that does not become a passing fad (remember avocado colored appliances?).
In this particular building, we’re working with a company to create a custom mosaic tile design that looks very high end and will be installed in the lobby and on each floor. When they come into the building or off the elevator, they’ll see this amazing mosaic work.
Q: What are some other types of bling you’ve incorporated?
Les Bluestone: Statement lighting is important. We select fixtures that won’t get damaged easily. In one building we did a live green wall for the entire length of the lobby. You walk in and it’s not only calming, but it’s also helps improve the air quality. It’s wonderful and totally high end. At one time, bling was simply having a pullout faucet in a kitchen. Now that’s expected.
In our affordable apartments, we now install dishwashers, stone countertops, tile backsplashes, video intercoms, USB charging outlets, NEST thermostats, LVT flooring and high design doors and hardware. This wasn’t always the way, but now when something new comes down the pike and people are impressed by it, we try to incorporate it to set our building apart from another. This happens even in affordable housing!
Q: What kind of amenities will we see at Linden Grove?
Les Bluestone: There will be an outdoor landscaped area with adult fitness equipment and seating. We’ll also have a large lounge area with computers. And we’re now including internet access at no cost for all residents in the building.
The laundry room has been moved up from the cellar to the roof. The 13th floor of this building in Brooklyn has probably some of the most spectacular 360 degree views you’ll find because there’s very little around it to obstruct the view. Outdoor seating areas with pergolas surround this public penthouse. There’s also community gardening up on this level, an arts and crafts room and an indoor fitness center. In this particular building we have a large solar panel system on the roof that will help offset utility bills for the building as well.
We’re big believers that if you treat people with respect and give them materials, surfaces, and features that maybe they’re not used to receiving in low income and affordable housing, they will be appreciative and take pride in their new home. There are always a few that won’t be, but that happens in buildings of all income levels. That’s just the way life is.